A recent Digital Life survey in Great Britain revealed that corporate social media is generally a failure, with organizations “generating mountains of digital waste, from friendless Facebook accounts to blogs no one reads.” And so in a long history of media, yet another medium has been turned into a source of noise pollution by direct marketers.
First there was the proliferation of junk mail that citizens received in their post boxes. With the dot com era came spam, an onslaught of unwanted email from marketers laying waste to your in box.
And now with social comes digital waste. Everyday we see endless streams of poorly disguised messaging and sales pitches. Even though you may not have opted in to it, your friends share the waste, or it shows up via a “social ad” placement.
Lest we think the phenomena of bad marketing limits itself to direct marketing, perhaps I can share with you some of the many the horrible pitches PR “pros” email me everyday thinking they just might get on this blog. Or simply turn on your television and watch the bad advertising.
Poorly executed marketing dominates every time and medium.
No wonder great marketing campaigns are so noteworthy. They stand out in comparison.
And therein lies the opportunity. With the bar so low, it becomes easier to win. We simply need to take the time to practice our craft, and mindfully attend to our communications, honing our craft so it resonates with our stakeholders. Success takes work, but when the competition is so bad it is very, very attainable.
What do you think about the general practice of marketing these days?